


Wish You Were Here

by brak



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Derek Hale & Scott McCall Friendship, F/M, Future Fic, M/M, Pack Feels, Scott McCall is a Good Alpha, True Alpha Scott McCall, canon compliant as of season 4 finale, reference to canonical abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-07
Updated: 2015-05-07
Packaged: 2018-03-29 12:38:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3896602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brak/pseuds/brak
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Derek leaving is the first of many changes the years bring to Beacon Hills. But Scott learns that no matter how far apart they all get, they'll always be a pack.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Spring 2012-Summer 2014

**Author's Note:**

> Enormous thanks to LaT and Poisontaster. This story is so much better for your input.

Derek and Braeden leave town about a week after Mexico. Scott helps them pack up some of Derek’s things and load them in his car. Scott desperately wants to ask him to stay, but he swallows it down. He and Derek are friends. He’s sure of that. But they’ve never really defined their relationship. He’s pretty sure if he asked, Derek would say he wasn’t in Scott’s pack. Scott would like him to be, but he’s waiting for Derek to want it too. He doesn’t feel he has the right to ask for it.

When they’ve got everything packed up, Derek turns to Scott and hands him a set of keys.

“Feel free to use the place,” he says nodding back toward his building. “I left a list on the fridge if you ever need any work done. Plumbing, electrician, things like that. They’ll know where to send the bill.”

“Are you sure about this?” Scott asks.

“We’ll be fine,” Derek says. “And so will you. You remember what I said? You’re gonna be good at this. Trust yourself. Trust your pack.”

Derek holds his phone up, “I may not always text you back, but if you need me, I’ll come. I promise.”

“I’ll miss you,” Scott says. He refuses to feel embarrassed by the tears in his eyes.

Derek just pulls him into a hug. They say their final goodbyes and Derek gets into the car. Braeden walks up to Scott. She hands him the keys to her motorcycle.

“Take care of her for me,” she says with a smile.

Scott reaches out to shake her hand. “Take care of him,” he says.

“Don’t worry. I will.”

Then she’s in the car and they’re driving off. Scott keeps waving until he can’t see them anymore.

Derek sends him a postcard. He can’t believe it at first. He thinks he must be hallucinating when the first one arrives. It’s from the Grand Canyon. There’s no return address. It just says, “Hey. From D&B” on it. Scott puts it up on the refrigerator. Stiles acts like it’s the most bizarre thing he’s ever seen. Kira thinks it’s cute.

Things are remarkably calm for the rest of junior year. The lacrosse team makes it to States, but can’t pull off a victory. As the summer passes, Derek sends more postcards from all over the country.

They mostly just say “Hey”, but occasionally there’s an actual sentence. “NEVER come here! D&B” says the one from Las Vegas. “It’s like another planet. D&B” from Badlands National Park. A week later, “SO many buffalo. D&B” from Custer, South Dakota. A week after that, he gets another one from Devil’s Tower that just has a few music notes written on it. Scott finds a website where he can plug in the notes and the computer plays it for him, but he doesn’t recognize it. He plays it for Stiles who takes one look at the picture on the card and bursts out laughing, which is how something called ‘Close Encounters’ gets added to the list of movies Stiles can mock him for never having seen. 

It’s three months before the next one and Scott is actually starting to get a little worried when a postcard arrives from Vancouver. It just says, “Still alive. D&B”. A few weeks after that he gets an actual “Wish you were here” from Anchorage, Alaska.

Senior year comes before they know it. There’s supernatural weirdness, but they handle it. Mason has been pretty tenacious about getting to the bottom of what’s going on in town since he and Lydia were attacked by the berserker and eventually they can’t put him off any longer. He’s a bit freaked out at first, but gets over it quickly. He ends up being a big help, and it’s definitely a load off of Liam not to have to keep so much from his best friend.

High school graduation brings a lot of difficult decisions, where to go to college being one of the tougher ones. He applies to five different schools, and gets accepted into three. But somehow, he can’t bring himself to make a decision.

The thought of leaving Beacon Hills, even for a few months at a time keeps him up at night. Having the Sheriff and Parrish in the know has been a big help in dealing with things. He’s pretty sure they could handle anything that came up. But then he thinks about the younger members of the pack. Liam and Mason won’t graduate for another two years.

Brett is dating Mason now. Scott can tell he would like to bring Mason into his pack, but Liam and Mason are a packaged deal and Liam is Scott’s through and through. Liam and Brett tolerate each other because they both love Mason. Scott gives it a few more years before they’re actually friends. He’s talked it over with Satomi. If Brett wants to “marry in” to Scott’s pack there won’t be any hard feelings. But it’s just another layer of complication to consider when he thinks of leaving them alone. One more kid he’d be leaving behind.

“We were handling stuff just fine at their age,” Stiles says.

“Yeah, but we had Derek. We were never really on our own.”

Stiles opens his mouth to say something, but shuts it again. “Yeah, we did.” They’re both quiet for a moment. “Maybe it’s an alpha thing,” Stiles punctuates the suggestion with a snap of his fingers. “Like you don’t want to abandon your territory?”

“I hadn’t thought of it like that.”

He asks Deaton.

“It’s certainly possible,” he says. “Teenaged alphas aren’t exactly common. Most werewolves don’t become alphas until they’re well into adulthood. It’s not really an issue they have to deal with. But I think I’ll give you the same advice I’d give to any young man who’s uncertain about his future. Think about what you really want from life. What will make you happy? Think about what you really want to do, not what you think you should do.”

His mother says pretty much the same thing, “All any parent wants for their kid is for them to be happy. There’s no rule that says you have to go away to college. If staying here feels right, then you should do it.”

So Scott enrolls in Beacon County Community College. He decides to get his Vet Tech degree and Deaton agrees to hire him full-time once he gets his certification. He hates to disappoint Stiles. They’d been talking about going away to college together for years and they’d both been accepted to Berkeley. But at the end of the day going away just feels wrong, and Stiles understands.

Graduation is bittersweet. They’ve only got one last summer together before they go their separate ways. His mom takes two pictures of the five of them in their gowns after the ceremony, one with Scott and Malia giving big squinty eyed smiles so their eyes don’t flash and with Kira hiding her kitsune aura. The second with full-on lens flare and glowing fox armor. He sends the second one to Derek.

“We survived high school!”

Derek actually texts him back. “Congratulations.”

During the summer he and Stiles go on a road trip. They drive down the coast, then spend a few days at Disneyland. He wishes he could send Derek a postcard. He settles for an email. He and Stiles get their picture taken in front of a green screen and Disney magic makes it look like they’re riding a surf board with Stitch. Derek doesn’t reply, but Scott hopes it made him smile.

College starts all too soon. Stiles goes to Berkeley, Lydia to Stanford. Kira’s going to NYU and they decide the long distance thing would be unfair to both of them. It’s a weird sort of un-break up. Scott focuses on his classes and decides he’ll move on whenever it feels natural.

Malia stays in town too. She’s not really inclined to go on after high school, but Scott talks her into taking a few classes with him. She sort of stumbles into a Criminal Justice major and decides she wants to be a cop.

The postcards keep coming from all over the country, down to Puerto Rico, then Argentina “Hola! D&B” and underneath that “What’s up, bitches! Cora”. From there it’s Cape Town, then zigzagging North through the countries of Africa.

The others send him postcards too. “I refuse to be outdone in the communication department by Derek Hale,” reads the one he gets from Stiles. The ones from Lydia and Kira also mention Derek as their inspiration.

Scott lays all three of them out on the kitchen table, snaps a picture of them and sends it to Derek with a message reading “See what you started?”

He gets a few more from them every once in a while when they go somewhere particularly interesting and of course he continues to get them from Derek. Scott keeps them all, each in their own little stack, in a box under his bed.

The five of them do Spring Break in Key West. It turns out mer-folk are a thing that exists. They all agree never to speak of it again. They do get a passing jogger to take a picture commemorating their survival though. Scott has it framed and hangs it on the wall in his bedroom.

In the middle of his freshman year he gets a postcard from Paris. This one has a return address on it and is in what he assumes is Braeden’s writing. “Look who I found! (again), B&D” and underneath it, “Sorry I lost touch. This is my address. Write if you want. Love, Isaac”

He does write, of course. He fills Isaac in on everything that’s happened since he left. Tells him he’d love to see him again. Isaac ignores the invitations to return to Beacon Hills, but they start writing back and forth, keeping each other up to speed on what’s going on in each other’s lives. It’s silly, Scott thinks. There are certainly faster ways to communicate. Isaac must have an email address, but Scott never asks for it. Like the postcards, it’s nice to get something in the mail once in a while that isn’t bills or junk.

They’re all back together again that summer after their freshman year.

“I really love being on my own,” Kira says. “I mean, don’t get me wrong. I love my parents and it’s great to be home, but there’s something about having your own place. Even if it’s just a dorm.”

Stiles and Lydia nod in agreement.

“Have you thought about getting your own place, Scott?” Liam asks.

“What could I possibly afford that would be nicer than this?” Scott asks indicating his living room where they’re all gathered.

“What about Derek’s loft?” Kira says. “I mean, he basically gave it to you.”

“We know it’s a great party space,” Lydia says.

Scott takes a few days to think about it and the next weekend they’re all moving him into the loft. Derek left all the furniture so Scott really just has to bring all his clothes and a few personal effects over. He does actually buy a TV though.

They’re unpacking boxes and figuring out where to put things when Stiles gets to the box with the postcards.

“What’s all this?”

“Just postcards from everybody.”

“Wow! Derek’s really been getting around,” Mason says as he flips through a stack of cards.

“He still with Braeden?” Liam asks.

“They all still say from D&B,” Scott says with a shrug.

They all sit up late that night, going through the postcards talking about places they’ve been and places they’d like to go, and imagining what Derek and Braeden might have been getting up to in their journey around the world.

The next morning Scott is awoken by Derek’s alarm system that none of them can seem to figure out how to deactivate.

He resets the alarm just as Stiles and Malia slide the door open. Stiles is carrying some sort of giant rolled up poster and Malia is loaded down with shopping bags. The look on her face is one Scott has seen often, and probably worn himself a few times. It says ‘if I didn’t love him so much, I would probably claw his face off.’

“I figured out what to do with your postcards!” Stiles says. “Come help me get the cork board. I can’t carry it myself.”

“Stiles, what the hell? You left here at 2am. It’s only nine.” Scott is wearing just his boxers and has a sleep mask pushed up onto his forehead (those windows let in a lot of light in the morning).

“Stiles gets antsy when he hasn’t constructed a murder board in a while,” Malia says.

“Murder what?” Scott isn’t feeling entirely awake.

“No one’s been murdered!” Stiles says. “They haven’t, have they? Because that’s something we should look into while the pack is all together.”

“No. No murders lately.”

“Oh. Well, that’s good. And boring. But still good. Get dressed, Scotty. This cork board is huge.”

Scott gets dressed and follows Stiles downstairs.

“Where did you even get this stuff this early in the morning?”

“Wal-Mart’s open 24 hours a day.”

It turns out that Stiles really does get antsy when he can’t hang a bunch of pictures on the wall and connect them with strings. The rolled up poster is a map of the world and the other bags are full of different colored yarn.

“I couldn’t decide what color to use,” Stiles says.

“This one,” Scott says holding up a blue that matches the color of Derek’s wolf eyes.

It takes most of the day (mounting the cork board is more difficult than they’d thought it would be), but by evening there’s a map of the world with all of Derek’s post cards on it, a string of blue yarn tracking his journey.

“It’s missing something,” Stiles says.

Scott agrees, but he can’t put his finger on it.

“I know,” Malia says. She rummages through the bag of yarn and pulls out a ball of orange. She takes the postcard Kira sent when she arrived in New York and runs a string from Beacon Hills to New York City.

“Yes!” Scott says. He takes a gray strand and loops it around the tack securing Derek’s postcard from Paris and then down to Cannes where he secures it with a tack holding the card Isaac sent to inform him of his recent move.

“Why gray?” Stiles asks.

“Like his scarf.”

Stiles rummages through the bags of yarn until he finds an orangey-red.

“Not quite strawberry blonde, but it’ll do,” he says as he connects it to Lydia’s postcard from Stanford.

Scott uses a string of white for Stiles’ first card from Berkeley.

“Because you’re so pale,” he says with a smile. Stiles smacks him on the arm, but doesn’t make any attempts to change it.

Over the next few days Scott adds photographs to the wall on either side of the giant map. There are pictures of him and Stiles from when they were kids, their graduation picture, the Key West picture, a picture of him and Liam from this past lacrosse season after Liam took the team to victory in the state championships. There’s at least one of everyone in the pack by the time he’s done. Scott looks at the map and all the postcards and realizes with sadness that he doesn’t have a picture of Derek. The cards will have to do.

In early July there are a bunch of mysterious drownings at the local country club.

It turns out they filled the swimming pool with water from a local spring (“because that’s what rich people do when they’re bored and running out of ideas of what to spend money on,” Stiles says) and they trapped a now very angry water spirit.

Deaton finds a ritual that will bind the spirit to a small amount of the water in the pool which will allow them to put it back in the spring where it came from.

Unfortunately that means they have to fill a gallon jug with water from the pool. Which is how Stiles and Liam end up soaked to the bone and sputtering up water by the side of the pool while Scott twitches on the ground next to them thanks to an errant lightning bolt from Kira.

“I’m so sorry!” Kira says as she cradles Scott’s head in her lap.

“It’s okay,” Scott says as his body convulses. “Be fine in a minute.”

“That officially tops my previous worst time in a swimming pool story,” Stiles says before a coughing fit claims him. Malia kneels down next to him and slaps him on the back.

Mason is doing the same for Liam, “You have a swimming pool story that even remotely compares to this?” Mason asks.

“Two hours treading water with a paralyzed Derek Hale in my arms while a giant killer lizard waited to kill us.”

“I can think of worse things to do in a pool.”

They all turn to look at Mason.

“What? I’ve seen him.”

Liam starts laughing which prompts another coughing fit.

“Mind out of the gutter, kid,” Stiles says. “We were both fully dressed.”

“That’s a damn shame.”

Scott coughs out a laugh, “Come on. We’ve got to get moving. Deaton says the binding will only last til sunrise.”

“You three don’t look like you’ll be up to trekking through the woods to that spring any time soon,” Lydia says.

“How are you the only one not soaked?” Liam asks.

Lydia just smiles.

“She’s right,” Scott says. “Kira, Malia, go with Lydia and put this thing back where it belongs.”

“What about you guys?” Malia asks.

“We’ll be all right,” Stiles says patting her hand where she’s holding his shoulder. “Mason’ll get us home, right kid?”

Mason nods. “You can count on me.”

The girls join them back at the loft around sunrise after successfully returning the spirit to its home.

Mason cooks them all breakfast.

“God, I love bacon,” Malia says as they all chow down.

“This is incredible, dude,” Stiles says through a mouthful of waffles

“Mason makes the best waffles,” Liam says.

“I love you guys,” Scott says earning a chorus of ‘awws’ from the table.

The problem at the pool is the only big supernatural issue they have to deal with all summer. Scott encourages them all to hang out together as much as possible, savoring the time spent with his pack even as he knows they’ll all be heading out of town for school again soon.


	2. Fall 2014-Fall 2015

His second year in college, Scott meets Antonio Gomez. He’s really smart and kind of dorky and they hit it off right away. He’s originally from Arizona but he’s living in Hill Valley now with his grandparents and going to school to be a dental hygienist. They’re in ethics and algebra together, so they decide to be study buddies. That eventually evolves into movie buddies.

Scott doesn’t realize they’re dating until after the third movie night when he’s being dropped off at the loft and Antonio kisses him as he goes to leave the car.

Scott freezes.

“Oh, God,” Antonio says. “Was I reading things wrong? I thought…”

Scott should probably feel more conflicted about it, but he doesn’t. Antonio is cute, smart, and clearly into him, and Scott has always let his heart lead him where it wants him to go before.

“I wasn’t expecting it,” Scott says. “But I’m glad you did it,” and he kisses Antonio back.

They pull back slightly from the kiss, foreheads pushed together. Scott looks down at the bright white smile on Antonio’s face as they both breathe nervously for a moment. He pulls back a bit more, returning Antonio’s smile with one of his own and reaches out a hand to straighten the black framed glasses their kiss had knocked astray before bringing it down to rest against Antonio’s stubbled cheek.

“You should know I’ve never been with a guy before,” Scott says.

“I’m sure you’ll figure it out. It’s not that hard.”

“Isn’t that a bad thing when two guys are together?”

Antonio laughs and pushes him away playfully. “Don’t be fresh! Now get out of here. I’ll see you in class tomorrow.”

Scott gives him one more quick kiss and gets out the car. “See you soon.”

Something happens in Cannes in December that sets Isaac on the road. The letter Scott gets only alludes to whatever it was. Reading between the lines, Scott is pretty sure it has to do with a girl Isaac was seeing and the relationship ending badly. He texts Chris Argent to see if he knows what happened, but he doesn’t have a clue. Over the next few months he gets postcards from all over Europe: Munich, Madrid, London, Oslo, then Auckland, New Zealand, and finally Honolulu, all with some variation of “Don’t worry. I’m okay”. They start writing back and forth again when Isaac gets settled in Hawaii. Once they’re exchanging letters more regularly, Scott drops a few hints about wanting to know more about what happened in Cannes, but Isaac never says. 

Scott and Antonio are still together and going strong by the time Scott and Malia graduate that spring. Melissa loves him. He’s gotten Stiles’ stamp of approval. He’s met Malia, of course, but none of the others. Scott hasn’t actually told him about the werewolf thing. It’s actually the longest he’s managed to keep the secret from anyone. Not that he’s proud of it, but how exactly does one work “I’m a werewolf” into casual conversation with their boyfriend?

He texts Derek for advice.

“Are you two really serious?” Derek’s message reads.

“Yes.”

“Then you already know what to do.”

Scott thinks back to when he asked for Derek’s help with Liam, to that absolute confidence Derek had in him even though he doubted himself on every level. Scott can practically feel that same confidence coming through the phone as he reads those words and it makes him feel brave.

So the night of his graduation ceremony, after the party at his mom’s house when Malia and Stiles have gone off to do some celebrating of their own, he asks Antonio back to the loft.

He’s awkward and nervous and stumbling over his words.

“There’s something to… I mean I need to say…”

Antonio looks wary, “Is something wrong?”

“I… No, it’s just… I don’t know how to start.”

“Are you… are you trying to break up with me?”

“What? No!”

Antonio sighs in relief. “Okay. Then whatever it is, it can’t be that bad.”

“I’m not breaking up with you,” Scott says again. “Kind of the opposite, actually. There’s something I need to tell you. Something you should know if we’re going to be together. I just don’t know what to say. You’ll probably think I’m crazy.”

Scott paces back and forth in front of him. “But I can prove it!” Scott stops and turns to face Antonio. “But then you might be afraid. You really shouldn’t be afraid. I’d never do anything to hurt you!”

“I think I know what this is,” Antonio says.

“Oh, I’m pretty sure you don’t.”

Antonio takes Scott by the shoulders and looks him in the eye. “I know you’re a werewolf”

“What? How?”

“I have a secret too.”

“Are you?” Scott tilts his head looking at him quizzically. He gives a reflexive sniff of the air, but all he smells is a human.

“No, I’m not a werewolf,” Antonio says with a laugh. “But most of my family are. Well, on my dad’s side anyway. Mom was bitten. Her parents, the grandparents I live with, they’re human. But my dad’s family and both my brothers are all born wolves.”

“But not you?”

He shrugs helplessly. “I’m a werewolf squib,” he says with a smile. “My uncle is the pack alpha. He offered me the bite, but I’m not sure that I want it yet.”

Scott heaves a relieved sigh. “I can’t believe you knew this whole time.”

Antonio pulls him into a tight hug, tucking Scott’s face into the crook of his neck, just holding him. “Oh, baby you were so nervous. It’s all okay. I love you.”

“Love you too,” Scott says. “Why didn’t you ever say anything?”

“I wanted to, but it’s kind of hard to work ‘I know you’re a werewolf’ into a conversation with your boyfriend.”

Scott huffs a laugh, “I guess so.”

They loosen their embrace, standing a bit away from each other, but still holding onto each other’s arms.

“Can I see?” Antonio asks.

It takes Scott a moment to figure out exactly what he’s asking, “What? Oh! Yeah, sure.”

Scott takes a step back, ducks his head and shifts. He looks up and Antonio gasps.

“You’re an alpha?”

“Since I was sixteen.”

“How?”

“That’s kind of a long story, actually.”

It’s about two hours later when Scott finally finishes the abridged story of how he became an alpha.

“Wow. We heard rumors about a true alpha emerging in California, but my uncle didn’t believe it.”

“Well, here I am.”

“But where’s your pack? It can’t just be you and Malia?”

Scott takes him over to the map wall and the ever growing collection of pictures surrounding it, “So, I’ve told you about this, right? My friends send me postcards and I keep track of where they’ve been?”

Antonio nods.

“Well, this is my pack.”

He starts with the high school graduation picture and points them each out.

“You know Malia. And you’ve met Stiles, he’s a human by the way. This is Lydia,” he says pointing to her. Then he traces her string along the map. “She’s a banshee. She went to Stanford and now she’s studying at Oxford.”

“Kira’s a kitsune. She’s at NYU. She’s studying history. She’s super excited about this trip she’s going on to Indonesia this summer. We… um. weusedtodate.”

“What was that?”

“You heard me.”

Antonio places a kiss on Scott’s temple. He runs his finger along Isaac’s string. “Who’s this?”

“Isaac,” Scott says pointing to a picture of him on the wall. “Werewolf. He lived with me and my mom after his dad died. He left town before we graduated high school.”

“Why?”

“Someone we both loved died, and he just couldn’t stay here.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Sometimes I wonder if I’d handled things differently, if he might have stayed.”

“I’m sure you did everything you could.”

“It’s sweet of you to be supportive, but honestly I was too wrapped up in my own grief to really even notice he was gone at first. And then I was just mad at him.”

“And now?”

“Now, I’m just sad. I want him to come home, but he just ignores me every time I ask.”

“You know it’s pretty incredible that after all that, you still consider him a part of your pack? Most alphas wouldn’t.”

Scott looks up at him, confused. “He’ll always be in my pack.”

Antonio smiles and kisses him. “You’re amazing,” he says. He turns back to the wall and points to a picture of Liam and Mason, “Who are the kids?”

Scott laughs. “Stiles calls them my puppies. Liam is my first real beta. I kind of bit him by accident.”

“How do you bite someone by accident?”

“He was falling off a roof and my hands were otherwise occupied.”

Antonio laughs, “So you caught him with your mouth?”

“Pretty much,” Scott says sheepishly.

“And his friend?” Antonio asks, pointing at Mason.

“Mason. He’s human. Though I think he’s going to ask me.”

“What will you say?”

“I don’t know. He’s only 18, but he’s been with us long enough to know what he’s asking for. I guess I’ll wait and see what he has to say about it, but I don’t know. How can I drag him into all this craziness?”

“If he’s in your pack, he’s already involved. Trust me, I know. Being the human in the pack doesn’t make your life any less dangerous.”

“You may be right. It still just feels…I don’t know.”

“You told me you were bitten against your will?” Antonio says.

Scott nods.

“So, I guess I understand that the way you were turned colors your view on turning other people. But being a werewolf isn’t a curse. You get that, right?”

“I do. It took me a while to get there, but I do.”

“Then, can I give you some advice, as a human who grew up in a werewolf pack?”

“Okay.”

“Don’t make this about you. If you think he’s old enough to know what he wants, then the only question you need to ask yourself is if you trust him to handle that power.”

“I do. It’s just that he’s so young still. He and Liam are just graduating high school this year.”

“If you don’t think he’s ready, then ask him to wait. Is he going away to college?”

“He and Liam have both been accepted to Northwestern.”

“Wow! Good for them. So put him off for a year. Tell him you think he needs more time to think about it. And take that time yourself, because he won’t be the last person to ask this of you.”

“I’ll think about it.”

Antonio turns his attention back to the photographs on the wall. He motions up to another picture. It’s Mason’s prom picture. “So, that’s Mason. Who’s his date?"

“That’s Brett. He’s sort of between packs at the moment.”

“How does that work?”

“He was part of a pack when we met him, but since he’s been with Mason he sort of drifts between his old pack and mine.”

“Huh. Usually it’s the human who marries into the wolf’s pack. Not the other way around.”

“Mason goes where Liam goes.”

“Quite the family you’ve got here,” Antonio says sounding impressed. “You’re all so young though. And you were just a kid when you were bitten. There must have been someone who taught you?”

“Derek was older. He taught me a lot. But he was never really a part of the pack.”

“Why not?”

“When I figure it out I’ll let you know.”

“Complicated?”

“Yeah. This is him, though,” Scott says pointing to the blue string on the map. “I don’t have any pictures.”

“Wow. He really gets around.”

“He’s been at it for a couple years now. Him and his girlfriend. I text him sometimes. He usually doesn’t answer back.”

“You sound like you really miss him.”

“I never understood why he had to leave.”

“He must be pretty special if you have him up here alongside your pack.”

Scott looks up at him quizzically. “He’s my friend,” he finally says after a moment.

Antonio must sense that he doesn’t want to talk about it anymore. He puts an arm around Scott and guides him to the couch.

“Hey, let’s see what’s new on Netflix.”

They settle down on the couch, Scott snuggled against Antonio’s side as they browse through the new releases.

“Thanks, babe,” Scott says.

“No problem. Hey, guess what?”

“What?”

“You’re a college graduate now.”

“I really am. You know there were times I never thought I’d make it?”

“You’re a survivor, babe. I could tell that the day I met you.”

Scott earns his certification easily and goes to work for Deaton full time. There’s a problem that summer with some hunters chasing a family of werewolves through town. As near as Scott can tell, they haven’t actually done anything. All their eyes are gold anyway. With Liam and Malia, and a little help from the Sheriff’s department, it’s all pretty easy to deal with. The family says they don’t have a pack. It’s what made them an easy target for the hunters in the first place.

“They want to stay here,” Scott texts Derek. “They asked my permission.”

“Of course they did. You’re the alpha.”

“Should I let them?”

“Do they seem like they’ll cause trouble?”

“No. I think they just need help.”

“I think you’ve made your decision already.”

Derek’s advice very often comes down to some version of ‘trust your instincts’. If Scott trusted his instincts he wouldn’t be asking for advice in the first place, but it feels good to know Derek is still on his side. Derek had said he’d always be there when Scott needed him.

That’s how Terrence and Maria Panabaker and their 14-year-old son, Jamal end up in his pack.

“Just when you thought all your puppies were grown up, you go and adopt another one,” Stiles says with a laugh when Scott calls to update him on what’s been happening in town.

“He’s got parents,” Scott says. “So do Liam and Mason for that matter.”

“They’re still your puppies. Speaking of… Has Mason popped the question yet?”

“He’s about to.”

“Will you do it?”

“I don’t know. I just don’t feel right about it.”

“You offered to bite me once.”

“That’s different. We thought you might be dying.”

“So, if he had cancer or something and asked, you wouldn’t be as conflicted?”

“If it meant saving his life? Of course not.”

“But why would it be better if he was asking you because his only other option was dying? Shouldn’t it be more about what he wants for himself, that it’s a decision he’s made without something horrible hanging over his head?”

“So, you’re saying I should do it?”

“I’m not saying you should or shouldn’t. Believe me, I don’t envy your decision. I’m saying maybe you haven’t considered it from all the angles yet.”

“Antonio says I’m making it about me and not Mason.”

“Are you?”

Scott sighs, “Maybe. I don’t know.”

“So tell him that. Tell him you need more time.”

“Antonio said that too.”

“I knew there was a reason I liked him. He’s good for you.”

“It could kill him, you know?” Scott says after a long pause.

“I know.”

“You don’t think that’s a reason not to do it?”

“I think it wouldn’t be the first time he’s risked his life to be a part of this pack.”

“You know you say you’re not telling me I should do it, but it sounds an awful lot like you think I should do it.”

“I don’t know what I think, Scott. This is huge. But you didn’t call me up so I could just tell you what to do.”

“It’s such a big decision,” Scott sighs.

“It’s as much his decision as yours. Remember that.”

Mason asks about three months before he’s due to leave for college. Plenty of time to learn to control the shift. He comes to the loft one night looking nervous, and Scott knows he can’t put if off for any longer. He doesn’t say a word, just nods his head toward the door to the balcony and leads Mason out outside. Scott looks up at the night sky and sees the moon shining down on them. It will be full in a few days. Mason is standing next to him. Scott can hear his breathing and the nervous stutter of his heart.

“You know why I’m here?” Mason asks.

Scott nods.

“Then what’s your answer?” Mason asks when it becomes clear Scott isn’t going to say anything else.

Scott turns his gaze away from the moon and looks at Mason. “You haven’t asked me anything yet.”

Mason sighs, then takes a deep breath. “I want to be a werewolf, no…” he cuts himself off and starts again. “I want you to make me a werewolf. Will you?”

“You’re asking a lot,” Scott says.

“Please,” Mason says. “I just want to be able to help you. That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

Scott lets the impassive expression he’s been maintaining soften into a smile and reaches out to place a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “You do help, Mason. You’re a part of this pack as much as anyone.”

“I know. But I want more.”

“Is this about Liam? Or Brett? Do you feel like you can’t keep up with them?”

Mason takes a step back and turns his back to Scott for a moment before facing him again, “Yes… No… I mean, they’ve never made me feel bad about it. I’m sure neither one of them cares. But I do. I love them both and they’ve got this thing in common that I can’t really understand. And I want to. I want to be like them. I want to be like you.”

“Someone else said that to me once,” Scott says quietly, and turns away. “He’s dead now.”

“I know what I’m asking for, Scott.”

“It’s a big thing, Mason. It changes everything.”

“I know.”

“It could kill you.”

“I can accept that.”

“I’m not sure I can,” Scott says softly.

“You did it for Liam.”

Scott whips around. “I did this to Liam, not for him! I dragged him into this life and pulled you into it too.”

Mason looks stricken. “Scott, you saved Liam!” He rushes to continue as he sees Scott open his mouth to speak. “I’m not talking about falling off the roof. He was so angry all the time and no one could get through to him. But you taught him to control his anger. You made him a better person. You gave me my friend back. I don’t want to think about what might have happened to him if things hadn’t turned out the way they did,” Mason is practically in tears at this point. “So much good has come from Liam becoming a werewolf. If you hadn’t bit him, he’d probably be in juvie right now instead of getting ready to go to Northwestern. I’d never have met Brett, I’d never have been friends with all of you. Joining your pack has meant so much to us… to me. Do you really still regret it?”

Scott walks up to Mason and takes him by the shoulders. “No, I don’t regret it. But I’ll always feel bad for how it happened.”

“Liam doesn’t. You know that, right? He doesn’t blame you.”

“I know.”

“And I know things didn’t happen the way you would have liked, but I like to think we made the best of it.”

“Of course we did. Mason, I’m glad we all got to be friends, and I’m so proud of both of you.”

“Then please accept that I know what I’m asking for. This isn’t about what happened with Liam or anyone else. This is about what I want.”

Scott sighs, “I do trust you. I know you’ve given it a lot of thought. I know you know what you’re asking for. You are kind, and loyal, and brave, and I don’t doubt you’d make an amazing beta for me.”

“But?”

“But this is something I’m just not ready for. I’m sorry.”

“Do you think if you make me wait, I’m going to change my mind?”

“No,” Scott says, voice barely a whisper.

“Do you think you’ll ever change your mind?”

“I think some day I’ll have to,” Scott says. “But today is not that day.”

“I guess I have my answer then,” Mason says sounding dejected. He turns to walk away.

“Mason, wait.”

Mason turns back to look at him.

“I’m not saying no. I’m saying not now. You’re absolutely right when you say that making you a werewolf couldn’t possibly make you more involved in all this than you are already. But I need time. I promise I’ll really think about it while you’re away at school. This is a hang up that I have, and I know it’s something I need to get over. This is a part of myself and what I can do as an alpha that I haven’t quite made peace with yet, but I’ll get there. Be patient with me?”

“Of course,” Mason says and moves in to give Scott a hug.

“We’ll talk about this again, I promise,” Scott says as he wraps the boy up in his arms.

“Deal,” Mason says.

Come fall, everyone is headed back to school, Liam and Mason along with the rest this time. It turns out Scott really does miss his puppies. Jamal is a good kid, and happy to be part of a pack, but he doesn’t need Scott like Liam did. Sometimes it seems like it’s just him and Malia even though he knows in his head that’s not true. Stiles, Kira, and Lydia are just as much a part of the pack even if they’re not around as much, and the Panabakers are good people. Antonio is great, though technically, he’s got his own pack. But they’re not the people he grew up with. Now that Liam’s gone he doesn’t even know anyone on the lacrosse team. It’s like he’s suddenly been cut off from a life he didn’t even realize was slipping away.

He tells his mother as much one morning when he has her over for breakfast.

“You’re growing up, sweetheart,” she says. “Life can’t stay the same way forever, as much as we may want it to.”

“I feel like I’m losing them.”

She takes him in her arms. “With everything you’ve been through, I don’t think that’s possible. Things may not always be the same, but we always find ways to keep the people we care about close to us.” She takes him by the arm and walks him over to the map. “Just like you did with Derek. He may not be nearby, but he’s still in your life,” she says as she motions toward the map. “And he’s still here,” she adds placing her hand over Scott’s heart. “And so are all of them.”

Liam and Mason send him a postcard and Scott adds it to the map. He makes a line from Beacon Hills to Evanston, one string for each of them, yellow for Liam and pink for Mason (not his idea, they’d both picked their own, though he would’ve given Liam the yellow anyway). He chuckles to himself as he twists the strings around each other rather than place them side by side.

He figures Brett has decided which pack he wants to be a part of when he gets a postcard from Ohio State a few weeks later. He puts it up with the others and selects a dark green string that reminds him of Devenford’s lacrosse uniforms.

Two months into the fall, he gets a call in the middle of the night from a number he doesn’t recognize.

“Hello?”

All he hears on the other end is breathing.

“Is someone there? Are you okay?”

Silence for a moment and then a shaky voice, “Scott?”

“Isaac! What’s going on? Are you hurt?”

“No, no. I’m okay. I just…”

“Isaac, please. Tell me what’s happening.”

“I’m okay, Scott. I promise. I just… I want to come back. Is that…is that okay?”

“You don’t need my permission to come home, Isaac.”

“No, not back to Beacon Hills. Back…back to the pack.”

“Oh, Isaac,” Scott says, sad and relieved at the same time. “You never left the pack. Not as far as I’m concerned.”

He thinks he hears Isaac let out a sob.

“I’ll get a flight then,” Isaac says. “I’ll let you know when I’m back in town.”

“You’ll let me know when you’re arriving so I can pick you up at the airport!”

“Okay. Okay, I will.”

Isaac arrives a few days later. Scott is standing nervously in the baggage claim area at the San Francisco airport waiting for him. He almost doesn’t recognize him. He’s even skinnier than Scott remembers and his curly hair has been shorn into a buzz cut. Scott starts running toward him. He sees Isaac take off the sunglasses he‘s wearing and look around the room for him. Scott barrels into Isaac just as he catches sight of him.

“Welcome home!” Scott yells as he picks Isaac up and twirls him around.

Isaac lets out a laugh. “Miss me?”

“Of course, I missed you! God, Isaac, it’s been forever!”

He puts Isaac down and smiles up at him. He’s all at once the same and completely different. It’s not just the weight loss or the hair. “Something’s different,” Scott says.

“Like you said, it’s been a long time.”

“No, it’s not that,” he looks at Isaac’s face for moment. He hears Isaac’s heart kick into overdrive and he won’t meet Scott’s eyes. Scott has a terrible feeling he knows what’s different.

“Show me your eyes,” he says.

“Scott, please.”

He almost lets it go, backs off like Isaac clearly wants him to, but he can’t.

“Show me your eyes.” His own eyes flash red as he says it and Isaac’s flare in return. They’re bright blue, and Scott has never hated being right more in his entire life. “Oh, Isaac. I’m so sorry.”

“This was a mistake,” Isaac says shakily and turns to walk away.

Scott grabs his arm, “Isaac no! Talk to me, please!”

Isaac turns to him, tears in his eyes. “They made me. You have to believe me, I didn’t want to. They were going to kill me.”

Scott has a million questions, but he knows now isn’t the time. Isaac’s heart is beating way too fast for Scott to tell for sure, but he knows in his heart Isaac is telling the truth. “I believe you,” he says, pulling Isaac back into a hug. “I believe you.”

Isaac wraps himself around Scott and starts crying. “I’m sorry,” he says over and over again. “Scott, I’m so sorry.”

“Everything’s going to be all right, Isaac. You’re home now.”

“I can stay?”

“Of course you can. Mom’s got your old room ready for you. She’ll be so happy to see you.”

Isaac tenses at the mention of Melissa and Scott hugs him tighter.

“You won’t…You won’t tell her?” Isaac whispers.

Scott loosens the embrace a little and pulls back to look Isaac in the eye. “She’ll have to know eventually, but I think it’ll be better if it comes from you.”

“Will you be there with me?”

“Whatever you need. Now come on. Let’s get your bags and go home.”

Isaac is quiet as Scott drives them back to Beacon Hills.

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Scott says. “Not ever. But if you do, I’ll listen.”

“Not right now,” Isaac says quietly. “But thanks.”

Scott doesn’t leave his mom’s house that night until he’s sure Isaac is asleep. He heads home and before going to bed himself, he goes up the map. He sees Lydia’s path from Stanford to England, now to Boston and MIT. She graduated a year early and is starting on her doctorate. Kira’s back and forth from New York to Indonesia, China, Japan, India. She says she’s studying history. He’s pretty sure she’s researching kitsunes. Stiles’ white string goes from Berkeley to a semester abroad he did in Italy, to a research project in Costa Rica, and back to Berkeley again. His puppies starting the first leg of their big adventures and of course Derek and Braeden whose blue string crosses everyone else’s at some point. And then there’s Isaac. He takes the gray string and connects Hawaii back to Beacon Hills. All the journeys he’s been tracking, and one of them has finally come home. Scott knows Isaac only came back because he didn’t think he had anywhere else to go, but Scott can’t help but feel happy that Isaac still thought of him as someone to turn to, even if it was a last resort. As Scott lies down to bed that night he makes himself a promise to be the alpha Isaac needs, to make sure he never feels like he has to run away again.


	3. Fall 2015-Fall 2016

Derek’s postcards slow down for a few months. Scott gets worried. He hopes that Derek would call him if he ever needed help and he tries not to be a pest and text him. They’re back as suddenly as they stopped. There are three in his mailbox one day, showing pictures from Munich, Budapest, and Istanbul, but they were clearly all mailed from the same place. Scott wonders what they could possibly have been doing all that time. Clearly Derek was still thinking of him, which warms his heart. He tries to imagine what could have kept them so busy that Derek couldn’t find the time to throw a postcard in the mail. Some sort of supernatural bounty hunt for Braeden? Did they run afoul of some European werewolf hunters? He sends a text informing Derek he’d just received the backlog of postcards and asking if everything is okay. A few days later he gets a text that’s just a thumbs up emoji. He assumes it’s from Braeden because he can’t imagine Derek even knows what an emoji is.

The postcards resume their semi-regular arrivals. The next one is from Russia, then Israel, followed by Australia. Scott has a momentary hope they’ll stop by for a visit when he gets one from LA, but the next one arrives a few days later. Vegas again. “Nothing’s changed. It’s still horrible. D&B,” it says. Scott laughs as a he tacks it over the first one.

Scott has a full time job now and a steady boyfriend, but he spends as much time with the rest the pack as he can. He encourages Malia as she makes her way through the police academy. She’s really passionate about it and Scott is happy she’s found a calling.

“It’s like you and Derek said, we protect the town,” she says to him one night when they’re out to dinner. “But there’s a lot more to protect it from than the supernatural.”

“I’m happy for you, Malia. It’s good that you’ve found something you want to do with your life.”

“It’s the same thing you do.”

“I’m a vet tech.”

“That’s your job, that’s not what you do. You protect people. You protect this town. I’m doing the same thing. I’ll just be making money while I do it.”

“So you think I should’ve gone to the police academy with you?”

Malia lets out a laugh. “You could never be cop. You’re way too nice.”

Scott puts on an affronted expression, but he knows she’s not wrong.

He spends time getting to know the Panabakers. It’s a little strange at first. They’re both in their late thirties and other than Derek, the only people Scott has gotten to know who are significantly older than he is are his boss and his friends’ parents. But they’re good people and Scott wants to make sure they’re secure in their position in the pack. They invite him over for dinner at least once a month and he goes with them to Jamal’s football games. Beacon Hills’ football team has not improved at all since Scott was in high school and he encourages Jamal to go out for lacrosse in the winter. Scott makes plans to get Liam and Brett to help convince him when they come back for winter break.

He spends time with Isaac. He still won’t tell Scott what exactly happened to him in Hawaii, but he’s a lot less skittish now than when he first came back to Beacon Hills. At least Scott and Melissa are no longer scared he’ll just up and leave.

When Liam, Mason, and Brett come back for the holidays Scott makes a point of introducing them to Isaac. He invites them all over to the loft one night for pizza and movies. Scott is a little nervous. Liam’s heard about Isaac and had always seemed a little jealous of the position he’d once held in Scott’s pack. But once Liam realizes that Isaac is content with simply being back in the pack they actually got along quite well.

Scott and Isaac stay up late after the boys have gone home for the night. They’re sitting on the couch, Isaac lying back with his feet in Scott’s lap. Scott is polishing off a bottle of wine (the alcohol doesn’t do anything of course, but over the years, he’s discovered he quite likes the taste).

“So, why isn’t Mason a werewolf yet?” Isaac asks.

“Did he talk to you about that?” Scott asks slightly surprised. Despite the fact that they could all see it coming, Mason had never discussed his desire to become a werewolf with anyone before he asked Scott.

“No, but I can see it in his eyes whenever he looks at you. He asked you, then?”

“Before they left for school.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“You should know the answer to that better than most.”

“Is it because of Derek? Are you afraid to make the same mistakes he did?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. I mean, you’re pretty much Derek’s only success story when it comes to making werewolves.”

Isaac laughs bitterly. “Poor Derek then, because I’m a massive fuck up.”

“Isaac.”

Isaac sits up, pushing himself a little farther away from Scott, tucking his legs up close and hugging his knees. “No, I am, and I know it. I was messed up when Derek turned me and that’s not something the bite could fix. I had a good thing living here with you and your mom and I just walked out on all of you.”

“Allison had just died. It messed us all up.”

“You don’t need to make excuses for me, Scott. Yeah, Allison died, and it was awful, but I’m the only one who used that as an excuse to walk out on his friends. Things were going well for me in France and I screwed that up too, and then there’s what happened in Hawaii.”

“Which you still haven’t told me about.”

“And I probably never will. But my point, if I have one, is that we didn’t all come to bad ends because Derek turned us into werewolves. It was because we were stupid kids who didn’t know what we were getting ourselves into. Mason isn’t stupid and he’s been an active member of your pack for almost four years now. You’re not pulling him into this life against his will. He knows what he’s asking for. So what’s your hang up?”

“I don’t know. I guess I just figured that as long as he’s human then he still has an out. He’s choosing to be with us now, but he could still have a normal life if he wanted to. I feel like I’d be taking that away from him.”

Isaac uncurls himself and starts sliding toward Scott. Scott moves toward him as well and meet in the middle.

“Allison and her dad tried to have a normal life and in the end they couldn’t stand by and let us fight on knowing they could help,” Isaac says. Scott nods as Isaac continues. “Stiles is human, do you think he would ever, in a million years, just up and leave you for a ‘normal life’?”

“No.”

“Then, what makes you think Mason is any different?”

“You’re right. He’s a part of this pack and he’s earned the right to ask for this. I told him we’d talk again after his first year of college. If he asks me again, I’ll do it.”

“You know, Derek said the bite is a gift and despite everything, I really do believe that,” Isaac says, though he won’t meet Scott’s eyes as he continues speaking, “This connection we all have, as a pack, there were times when it was the only thing that kept me going, the only reason I didn’t just end it all.”

“Isaac?” Scott turns to Isaac, closing a hand around his forearm. Isaac’s eyes shine with tears in the dim light of the loft when he finally looks up at Scott.

“I wasn’t going to kill myself that night at the Glen Capri. I don’t know what you or Boyd or Ethan saw that pushed you over the edge, but for me, I was back with my father. Back in the freezer, and I was so scared, but I never even thought of killing myself. But I’d be lying if I said there haven’t been times since then.”

“I’m glad you didn’t,” Scott says as he puts an arm around Isaac and pulls him down to lean against his shoulder.

“I’m starting to feel the same way,” Isaac says once he’s settled.

“Good. Hey Isaac?”

“Yeah?”

“Can you do me a favor?”

“What?”

“Since I’m finally getting over my hang ups about perfectly reasonable requests from people who want to join my wolf pack, do you think you could maybe start trying to forgive yourself for mistakes you made as an abused and traumatized teenager?”

Isaac favors him with a genuine smile. “I will work on that.”

Antonio graduates at the start of summer and Scott throws a big party to celebrate. He also asks Antonio to move in with him. The guest list includes all of Antonio’s school friends, of course, but what really has Scott excited is that he has his pack back together for the first time in what feels like forever. It’s a dual graduation party really, as Malia has graduated the police academy. Stilinski has already said he’d hire her as a deputy. Scott looks across the room and sees her talking shop with Parrish who’ll be her Training Officer. Stiles walks up and kisses her as he hands her a drink, and then he walks over to Scott.

“How do you two do it?” Scott asks.

“Do what?”

“The long distance thing. Kira and I didn’t even bother to try and I know I couldn’t stand to be away from Antonio for so long.”

“I don’t know. We just do. We talk on the phone, we see each other when we can. I’ve got one more year until I graduate. Then I can come home. I mean, look at you and me. We’re still best friends and I’ve been away from you just as much.”

“It’s different though.”

“Is it? We wanted our relationship to continue so we made the extra effort. Same with Malia and me. We’ve got a plan and our eyes are on the prize. She’s going to work. I’m getting my degree and moving home. I’ll get my master’s online. We’ll get married, start a family and protect Beacon Hills from supernatural terror as part of Team McCall.”

“Married? When did that happen?”

“We talked about it after high school. Look, Malia and I always knew that our goal was us living here and being together. That wasn’t the same for you and Kira. That doesn’t mean it’s bad or that you didn’t love each other. You just wanted different things from life. Anyway, it looks to me like you’ve found someone who wants the same things as you do.”

He gestures over to Antonio who’s across the room with some of his school friends.

“Well, we did just move in together,” Scott says with a grin.

“So, if he had to go away for a while, maybe even a few years, but it meant that in the end you could be together, you don’t think you could handle it?”

“It would suck.”

“I’m not saying it doesn’t suck,” Stiles says. “I’m saying it’ll be worth it in the end.”

“I guess you’re right.”

“Right, so when’s the wedding? You know I’ve had my best man toast ready for the last ten years.”

Scott laughs. “I haven’t even met his family yet!”

“Well, get on with it, man! I’ve got a toast to make.”

There’s a burst of laughter from across the room and Scott turns to see a group of people gathered around Mason and Liam who are animatedly acting out a story. Brett is staring at Mason looking absolutely enraptured.

“Speaking of wedding bells,” Scott says.

“Ugh. Those two will beat us both to the altar. I’m surprised they haven’t already.”

“Did Brett tell you he was transferring to Northwestern?”

“No, but I’m not surprised. Is Mason a werewolf yet?”

“We’ll talk later tonight. I’m pretty sure nothing’s changed on his end.”

“And what about you?”

“He’ll be 20 in a few weeks. He knows what he wants. And it’s not like he’s not part of the pack already.”

“Except for his age, all that was true when he asked you last year.”

“I know.”

“So, what’s changed?”

“I have,” Scott says with a smile.

“If you say the bite is a gift, I’m going to punch you in the face,” Stiles says.

Scott laughs. “It can be though. That’s what I needed to realize. I was bitten and my life went to hell for a little while. I bit Liam and ended up dragging him into danger. But look at our lives now. Look where we all are. You guys are all in school. I’ve got a good job and this awesome apartment, which I only have because it used to be Derek’s. We’re friends with Lydia Martin. Did you ever think for a minute in freshman year that we would be friends with Lydia Martin?”

“Oh, I thought about it,” Stiles says.

Scott smiles, “You thought a lot of things about Lydia, none of them were about friendship,” he says and waggles his eyebrows.

Stiles smacks him on the arm playfully. “Cut that out. I haven’t thought about her like that in years.”

“I’m just saying, I needed to stop dwelling on the bad stuff that happened to me after I was bitten and think about the good. And I have to say, our lives are pretty damn good right now.”

“Fine, fine! The bite is a gift. So, when will you giving it to him?”

“We’ll talk later tonight, after the party.”

“Should be interesting.”

That night after the party has wound down, Scott takes Mason out onto the balcony. Brett and Liam have stayed behind and are inside helping Antonio clean up while Scott and Mason talk.

“This is still what you want?” Scott asks.

“It is,” Mason says. “I swear.”

“Okay, then.”

“So, uh… how do we do this then? Is there like, a ceremony or something? Or do you just grab me and chomp down?”

Scott chuckles, “No. No ceremony. Derek always bit people here,” he says putting his hand along Mason’s side. “But that’s where…” Scott shudders and trails off as he remembers the night he was bitten.

“That’s where Peter bit you too?”

Scott nods.

“Not there then. Where did you bite Liam?”

Scott takes Mason’s right hand in his left and runs his right hand along Mason’s forearm, “Here.”

“Then do it there.”

“Okay,” Scott says. He raises Mason’s arm up so he can reach it easier and shifts. He looks at Mason. “Ready?”

Mason nods.

“Close your eyes,” Scott says and Mason complies. Scott lets his breath blow hot across Mason’s arm. He leans in close and places a kiss on the area.

Mason lets out a gasp at the sensation.

“Sorry,” Scott says. “Here goes.” He gently places his mouth around Mason’s arm before closing his own eyes and biting down, just enough to break the skin.

Mason shouts, but doesn’t try to pull away.

When Scott lets go he looks up to see Mason cradling his arm, face somewhere between a grimace and a smile.

“You okay?” Scott asks, reaching for the towel and first aid kit he brought with him.

Mason nods, as Scott wipes the blood from his mouth and shifts back. Scott cleans and bandages the wound.

“If it all goes right, this will be gone by morning.”

“Thank you,” Mason says. “I mean it.”

Liam rushes up to Mason and hugs him when they go inside. Then Brett takes his turn, bending down to kiss him and then keeping an arm around Mason’s shoulder as the three of them head for the door.

“Wait!” Scott calls after them. He looks at Mason when they turn around. “I’d like it if you stayed here tonight.” He nods toward the spiral staircase then looks at Liam and Brett. “I put some air mattresses upstairs. I figured you two would want to stay with him.” 

Both boys nod and the three of them head for the stairs. Scott hugs each one of them before they go up.

“I’m here if you need me,” he says to Mason.

After the boys have gone up, Antonio walks up to Scott and takes him into his arms.

“You okay?”

“I think so.”

“He’s a good kid,” Antonio says. “He’ll be a good wolf.”

“I don’t doubt it.”

“And you’re a good alpha. This will be great. You’ll see.”

“You know? I think you’re right,” Scott pulls out of their embrace but keeps a hold of one of Antonio’s hands as he leads him around the loft shutting lights off.

“Scott, the place is a mess,” Antonio protests as Scott leads him toward the bed.

“And we can clean it up in the morning,” Scott says with a smile. “Right now, I just want to hold you.”

“Whatever you need, babe.”

About a week after they move in together and before Antonio begins job hunting in earnest, he takes Scott to Arizona to meet his family.

“Seriously, dude,” Scott says to Stiles over the phone. He’s currently hiding from everyone out in the back yard. “I thought Chris Argent aggressively serving dessert at me and grilling me about my drinking habits was scary. This is a whole other level of terrifying. It’s like his uncle is trying to stare into my soul. And I’m pretty sure his brothers already know where they’re going to hide my body.”

“Relax, Scott. You love Tony, right?”

“Of course. And you know he hates when you call him that.”

“That’s why I do it. But my point is all they’ll really want in the end is for Antonio to be with someone who loves him as much as they do. So just be your adorable, awesome boyfriendly self, and everything will be fine.”

“Oh, I can’t do this.”

“Yes, you can! You’re the hot girl, remember?”

“Stiles!”

“Say it!”

“I’m the hot girl,” Scott mumbles.

“Say it again and make me believe it.”

“I’m the hot girl.” More clear this time.

“You are the hottest girl. Now get back in there and knock’em dead, alpha mine.”

“Okay. Okay, I can do this.”

“You’re damn right, you can!”

“Babe, you out here?” He hears Antonio calling as he hangs up.

“Over here,” he calls out. “I had to talk to Stiles for a minute. He uh… needed my help with something.”

“Uh huh,” Antonio walks up to Scott and pulls him into a loose embrace. “He needed your help? And it couldn’t at all have been that you’re freaking out and needed a pep talk from your best friend?”

“I thought I was the one with super hearing,” Scott says with a smile.

“I don’t need wolf powers. I know you,” he gives Scott a quick kiss. “I’m sorry about my brothers. I swear they’re not actually huge assholes.”

“They love you,” Scott says.

“They’ve always been protective, since I’m the youngest and, you know, not a werewolf. I’ll tell them to back off. If it helps any, my mom adores you.”

“That’s a nice change, actually.”

“What? How is that possible? You’re like mom-nip. Just the sight of your face makes middle-aged women want to pinch your cheeks and feed you. I’ve seen it happen.”

“Well, the last two were a homicidal werewolf hunter and a 900 year-old fox spirit, so…”

Antonio laughs. “Well, my mom is a werewolf, and every werewolf mother wants her kid to marry a true alpha,” he pulls Scott closer. “You’re adorable.” He kisses Scott softly. “And my mom already loves you.” He kisses him again. “And more importantly, so do I.” Another kiss. “Now, let’s go inside, huh?”

“How am I doing with your dad?” Scott asks as they walk back to the house hand in hand.

“Well, when I told him your name was Scott McCall, he assumed I was bringing home a neurotic White guy, so you’re ahead on that score.”

The rest of the evening goes fairly well, but he still gets the feeling Antonio’s family finds him wanting. He lays awake that night. He’s alone in bed since Antonio’s parents won’t let them room together. He texts Derek for advice and almost falls off the bed when the phone rings and Derek’s caller ID pops up.

“I must be in more trouble than I thought if you’re calling,” Scott says.

“I’m sure you’re fine,” Derek says sounding strangely out of breath. “But this is a little important for a text. How do you think you’re doing?”

“Ok, I guess,” Scott says. He hears some kind of crash in the background and he thinks he hears Braeden shouting. “Are you in a fight?”

“I’m fine. Now, tell me how things are going.”

“I think his mom likes me ok, but his uncle and brothers keep getting in my face about things. I’m trying to stay calm. I shouldn’t fight them in their territory, right?”

“Fight them? No. But don’t back down from a challenge. They’re testing you.”

“I kind of figured that.”

There’s another loud crash on the other and end of the phone and what Scott is pretty sure is a gunshot. There’s a scuffling noise like Derek dropped the phone and then a thud and the sound of a man groaning.

“Sorry about that,” Derek says. “This isn’t a normal meet the parents scenario, Scott. You’re an alpha. They know that.”

“So?”

“So, you’re wooing their pack member away. Their human pack member. They want to know he’ll be safe with you. They want to know you’ll be good to him.”

“We’re just dating. It’s not like I’m stealing him…” ok that last sound was definitely a gun shot. “Derek, what the hell is going on?”

“Stay on task, Scott.”

“Derek!”

“All right, so I’m kind of in the middle of something. But this is important to you. Didn’t I say I’d be here if you needed me?”

“I think I can wait a few hours until you’re done with whatever it is you’re doing.”

“I may not have cell service by then. Listen, okay? Don’t back down when they challenge you. Don’t get violent, but stand firm. Be honest and direct. Be definitive about your intentions toward, what’s his name again?”

“Antonio.”

“Right. Be clear about that. But keep PDA to a minimum. Don’t be presumptuous. Act like you want him, not like he’s already yours.”

“You make it sound like I’m buying him.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. But this is a negotiation.”

“That doesn’t make any sense.”

More sounds of a scuffle and then Derek is back on the line, “I really don’t have the time to get into the intricacies of pack dynamics here. Just listen. Be tough. Be firm. Don’t let his brothers get the upper hand. Flash your eyes at them if you have to. Remind them who you are. But don’t ever throw the first blow. Not that I’d have to worry about that from you. Getting in good with his parents is fine, but the final say will be with the alpha. And he’ll want to be assured of two things: that you love Antonio, and that you’re strong enough to protect him. Make sure he knows that, and you’ll be fine.”

“Okay. Thanks for the help.” Scott pulls the phone away from his ear when he hears what sounds like an explosion. “Derek?”

He hears coughing and then Derek’s voice, “Still here.”

“Are you all right? What’s happening?”

“We’re fine, Scott.”

“You know if you need help that I’m here for you, right? We all are.”

“I know, Scott. But we’re fine. Trust me.” Scott hears the sound of a motorcycle engine and Braeden calling Derek’s name. “I’ve gotta go. Just remember what I said.”

“I will,” Scott says as the line cuts off. He looks down at the phone in his hand. “Be safe,” he whispers.

Scott heeds Derek’s advice and by the time they leave, he figures he must have the family seal of approval. He gets a hug from Antonio’s mom and hearty handshakes from his father, brothers, and uncle.

Scott is relieved to find a postcard waiting for him when they get home. It’s from Houston, Texas and dated two days after Derek’s phone call. Things settle down to normal after that. Antonio gets a job with a dentist in town while Scott continues his work at the animal clinic and the summer passes faster than he would like. The time he doesn’t spend at work is mostly spent helping Mason learn to control his wolf powers. 

Kira and Lydia don’t stay in town for the whole summer, but it isn’t long before Scott gets new postcards from each of them to add to the map.

By the end of summer, Mason seems to have things well in hand, but he starts getting more emotional in the two weeks leading up to going back to school. Scott worries he won’t be able to handle things on his own after all. He takes Mason out to the preserve, just the two of them, to practice, he says and asks him about it.

“I thought I had a handle on it,” Mason says. “Liam got like this before we left freshman year. I thought it was just nerves, but now I think it must have been a wolf thing.”

“Go on,” Scott says.

“I get upset when I think about leaving here… Leaving you.”

“I do too,” Scott says. “When you all leave I hate it. But we’re a pack. That means we’re never really on our own, no matter how far apart we are.”

“What if I can’t control myself without you?”

“You can. You’re strong, Mason. You know what you’re doing. I believe in you.”

“Thanks, man. That means a lot.”

“You’ve got this, kid. And you’ve got Liam and Brett with you. Pack takes care of each other.”

They spend a little while running around the woods, getting Mason’s heart rate up so he can practice keeping himself under control. Scott drives him home when they’re done and before Mason gets out of the car, he turns to Scott.

“I just want to say thank you. For all of this. Not just helping me control the shift. For the bite… for everything. It’s more than I hoped for.”

“I know I took a lot of convincing,” Scott says. “But you know it was never about you, right? I’m proud of you, Mason. And I’m glad I did it.”

Mason reaches across the front seat and hugs Scott, before heading up to his house.

Isaac completes his GED over the summer, then gets a job as a nursing assistant. The place he works for has a tuition reimbursement program and Scott and Melissa both encourage him to pursue nursing school.

Malia loves her new job as a deputy and the next time hunters show up in town to cause trouble they turn tail and run at the first sight of a pissed off were-coyote with a badge and a gun.

Scott traces a green string from Ohio to Illinois when he gets Brett’s postcard from Northwestern. He has a feeling he’ll be twining that one together with Liam and Mason’s from now on.


	4. Fall 2016-Summer 2017

Scott holds a Thanksgiving dinner for the pack and various relations. Stiles is home on break. His dad is there. Kira’s parents are there even though she wasn’t able to make it home. Scott’s mom is there, of course, with Isaac. Melissa’s managed to put some weight back on him and he’s growing his hair out again. He’s been seeing a therapist, someone in the supernatural know that Deaton recommended, and it seems to be helping. Just before dessert starts, Maria Panabaker clinks her glass for everyone’s attention and announces she’s pregnant. The whole table erupts in congratulations. Things quiet down only to get more excited when she adds it’s going to be twins.

The evening eventually winds down. The Panabakers head home. So do the Yukimuras. Someone put music on at some point. His mom and Stiles’ dad are chatting with Stiles and Malia. Isaac is half asleep on the couch.

Scott wanders away from the group toward the map wall. He pulls Derek’s latest postcard out from a chest of drawers nearby. It’s from New York. He just stands there looking at it, unsure why he doesn’t just put it up. He feels Antonio’s arms slip around him from behind.

“Missing your friend?”

“It just feels like he should be here, you know? Isaac’s back to stay. Mason’s a werewolf now. Maria’s having twins. The pack is growing and it…” Scott heaves a sigh. “It just feels like he should be here.”

“You always said he wasn’t part of your pack, but I feel like in your heart that isn’t true.”

“If he isn’t it’s because he doesn’t want to be. And I’ve always respected that. But that doesn’t mean he can’t be here.”

“That from him?” Antonio asks nodding down at the card in Scott’s hand.

Yeah. It came a few days ago,” Scott waves it in his hand and turns it over so Antonio can read it.

“So different, but still the same,” Antonio reads out loud. “What does it mean?”

“He lived there a few years ago, before he came back to Beacon Hills.” Scott tacks the card to the map and connects it to Derek’s last postcard (Indianapolis).

“You should text him.”

“Why? He won’t answer.”

“But he’ll know you were thinking of him.”

So Scott fires off a quick text: “Happy Thanksgiving. I miss you.”

He waits a minute, but doesn’t get a response.

“You know, seeing how he breaks your heart makes it hard for me to like him. Even if he is your friend.”

“It’s just how he is,” Scott says.

“Come on,” Antonio says and leads Scott out onto the balcony by the hand. It’s a little chilly, but not unbearable. Antonio takes him in his arms and kisses him. The kiss is slow and gentle, and Scott feels the loneliness of the moment before slipping away as it deepens and Antonio’s arms tighten around him. Scott would like it to go on forever, but eventually he has to pull away.

“While this would definitely help cheer me up under normal circumstances, I don’t think I’m up for a make out session with my mom on the other side of those windows,” Scott says.

Antonio laughs. “Sorry. That’s actually not why I brought you out here. I wanted to ask you something. Well, two things really.”

“What?”

“I talked to my uncle when we were in Arizona this summer. I told him I’d made a decision about the bite.”

“I’m guessing you decided against it, since you’re not a werewolf.”

“That’s just it,” Antonio says. He takes Scott’s hands in his and looks into his eyes. “I told him I wanted it. Just…not from him.”

Scott’s sure he looks a little dumbfounded, “Babe?”

“I love you, Scott. I want to be with you, but not just as your boyfriend. I want to be part of your family…part of your pack.”

“As far as I’m concerned you are in my pack.”

“For real, though. Not just as a human you’ve claimed. I want to be a real wolf in your pack. I want to be your beta.”

“I… Wow! I mean, if that’s what you want. But you really don’t want it to be your uncle? You know it wouldn’t matter to me if you did.”

Antonio looks at him with a fond smile. “It really wouldn’t bother you at all, would it?”

“Of course not.”

“You are like no other alpha I’ve ever heard of,” he says, the wonder clear in his voice.

“I’m sure you’ve given it a lot of thought and you said you talked it over with your uncle,” Scott takes a deep breath. “So yeah. If it’s important to you that it’s me, then I’ll do it, if you’re sure it’s what you want.”

“It is. Which brings me to my second question.” Antonio keeps a hold of Scott’s hands as he gets down on one knee. “Scott McCall, will you marry me?”

Scott doesn’t know what to do. There are tears in his eyes and a smile on his face, and he can’t seem to find any words at all. He looks down at Antonio who’s gazing up at him expectantly and finally just nods his head and says, “Uh huh,” because he can’t seem to get any other sound to come out.

Antonio surges up, hugging Scott hard, “Yes? That was a yes, right?”

“Yes!” Scott shouts. “Yes! That’s the word I was looking for,” He draws back and takes Antonio’s face in his hands and looks him in the eye. “Yes, Antonio Gomez, I will marry you.” He places a gentle kiss on Antonio’s lips then pulls him back into a hug.

Scott glances over Antonio’s shoulder and sees his mother looking at them through the window. She has tears in her eyes and is covering her mouth with both hands. He waves at her to come join them.

“My boys!” Melissa cries. “Oh, my boys!” She puts her arms around them both.

She’s quickly followed by everyone else in the loft.

“Well?” Stiles asks.

“I said, yes!” Scott yells.

“All right! Dog pile on the fiancés!” Melissa scoots out of the way as Stiles crashes into both of them.

“You mean wolf pile!” Isaac shouts as he and Malia join him and they all fall to the ground, laughing.

That night, Scott gives Antonio the bite as they make love. It’s raw and primal and passionate and amazing. When it’s done, he bandages the wound and draws Antonio close, as sleep claims them both.

“I’m so happy,” Scott murmurs as he drifts off.

“Love you,” comes the reply.

They set the date for the following September, mostly because Stiles will be graduated and moved back and able to help with the wedding planning.

“This is gonna be awesome, bro. Trust me,” Stiles says to Antonio. “Scott and I have been planning each other’s weddings since we were ten.”

“I think I made a terrible mistake,” Antonio says.

“Too late, babe,” Scott chimes in, leaning over the back of the armchair Antonio is sitting in. “No take backs. You’re stuck with me.”

Antonio reaches back over his shoulder to stroke one of Scott’s hands. “Could be worse, I guess.”

He gets another postcard from Derek around Christmas. He’s still in New York. He texts Derek to remind him that Kira is at NYU and he should look her up if he’s going to be in town for a while. And oh, yeah, he’s getting married in ten months and Derek better fucking be there. He doesn’t text back, or see Kira, but the next postcard (still in New York) arrives in early January and comes in an envelope with a $500 gift card to Bed, Bath, and Beyond. The picture on the postcard is two barely dressed sailors recreating the VJ Day kiss. “We’ll be there, D&B.” Scott has a huge grin on his face as he tacks it up on the map with the others. Derek is coming home. Maybe not to stay, but it’s been nearly four years since Scott has seen him and he can’t contain his joy at the thought.

By February, Derek and Braeden have moved on to Philadelphia. 

In March, Liam tells him that he, Brett, and Mason are doing Spring Break in Key West with some school friends. Scott shudders as he remembers his own Key West trip with the pack back in freshman year. He’s a little sad the boys won’t be returning home for break, but he doesn’t begrudge them their adventures. And maybe with a little help, their Key West vacation will go better than his did. He orders a set of shiny metal wind chimes from Amazon and has it delivered to Liam’s dorm. The note with it reads,

“Mer-folk like shiny things. Give them these and you should be okay.”

May is a big month. The Panabaker twins are born on the fifth and if there were ever cuter babies than Aisha and Alexander Panabaker, Scott’s certainly never seen them. It’s also graduation for Kira and Stiles. Unfortunately, Stiles can’t make it to New York for Kira’s graduation because her ceremony is happening during his finals week. But the rest of them go. Lydia joins them and then they all fly back together for Stiles.

It’s the first time they’ve all been together for a long time and Scott thinks it’s amazing. He can almost pretend he’s still just a kid out partying with his friends and not a 22-year-old man with a full time job and an apartment and a wedding to plan, or an alpha werewolf with an entire pack depending on him.

But when Scott looks at his pack, together, having fun, celebrating Stiles’ big day, and looks at the man he’s going to marry, he wouldn’t change a thing.

They’re all out to dinner. Lydia is explaining that she expects to have her dissertation finished and defended by the end of the year.

“Will we all have to call you Dr. Martin?” Kira asks.

“I’ll make an exception for friends,” she says with a smile. “What about you, Kira? What are you going to do now that you’re out of school?”

“Job hunting, I guess. I’ve got some applications out for research assistant jobs in a couple really exciting places.” She turns to Scott. “But of course I’ll be there for the wedding. You guys must be so excited!”

“We really are,” Scott says, smiling at Antonio.

“What about you, Stiles?” Lydia asks.

“Can’t really make the big bucks until I get my Master’s but I’m doing that online. In the meantime, I’ve got some consulting work lined up and I’m moving home with my awesome girlfriend and planning my best friend’s wedding.”

“Consulting work?” Kira asks.

“He means his dad is throwing busy work his way so Malia doesn’t have to completely support him on a deputy’s salary,” Isaac says.

“Ugh, I forgot how much I hated you,” Stiles says. “I will have you know I am doing a desperately needed overhaul of that department’s embarrassingly antiquated computer system.”

Scott gets another postcard from Derek in June. Apparently there’s a full scale replica of the Parthenon in Nashville. Who knew?

One Saturday in July the guys are out getting fitted for tuxes. Kira and Malia are along for fun. Scott has been making sure to spend as much time with Kira as he can. She’s casting a wide net in her job hunt, and he knows she may end up leaving Beacon Hills. This may be the last time they’re all together like this for a while, and Scott wants to make the most of it. It’s sad to think she might be leaving, but he learned over the years that distance doesn’t have to mean the end of a friendship and that there’s more to your pack then just the people who are nearby.

Kira comes up to where Scott is standing in front of the mirror and hugs him around his shoulders. “You guys are gonna look amazing!” she cries, shaking him out of his reverie.

He smiles at her. “Thanks!”

“What are the girls wearing?” Liam asks

“Don’t know,” Scott says.

“We put Lydia in charge of that,” Antonio adds.

“And we’ve been sworn to secrecy,” says Malia.

“But it’s going to look fabulous!” Kira says.

“Of course it will,” Stiles says. “Lydia knows her dresses.”

“So?” Brett says. “Antonio McCall? Are you excited?”

“Definitely,” Antonio says.

“You’ve been practicing writing it, haven’t you?”

“Maybe.”

“Wait, what?” Scott says. “You’re taking my name?”

Antonio and Brett both look at him like he’s grown a second head.

“Of course I am,” Antonio says.

“You’re the alpha,” Brett adds.

“But I thought... Well, don’t guys usually hyphenate when they get married?”

“Other guys maybe,” Brett says. “But guys who marry alpha werewolves take their spouse’s name.”

“Is that a problem?” Antonio asks.

“Of course not. Not if it’s a thing. But apparently I’ve been practice writing Scott McCall-Gomez for no reason.”

“Oh, babe,” Antonio says with a smile and gives him a kiss. “Sometimes I forget you built your pack from scratch with nothing but a faded copy of Cliffs Notes for how to werewolf.”

“Hey!” Liam says.

“I didn’t mean it like that. This pack is amazing. And quite frankly, there are a lot of things other packs could learn from you guys. But there are traditions you don’t know anything about.”

“Any other werewolf wedding traditions I should know before I step in it with your family?”

Antonio laughs. “A few. I’ll help you, I promise.”

“You should talk to Satomi,” Brett says. “She could help you out. You invited her right?”

“Should I?”

“She’s the alpha of the neighboring pack and you’re on good terms. You should definitely invite her.”

“Okay. I’ll give her a call.”

He has several meetings with Satomi and apparently a number of things Scott was planning that would have horribly insulted his future werewolf in-laws. So he dodged a silver bullet there.

It’s August before he knows it, and Scott hasn’t heard from Derek since June. He texts, but gets no reply. It’s not horribly out of the ordinary for Derek, but Scott is feeling the stress of the wedding planning. Antonio’s family is coming up the two weeks before the ceremony and everything needs to be perfect. Not that he thinks Derek could or would do anything to ruin his wedding on purpose, but if they’re going to have to drive down to Mexico and rescue him again, Scott would like to know sooner rather than later.

One afternoon he’s returning home after testing cakes with Stiles. Antonio hadn’t been able to get the day off. Which is why when Scott hears a heartbeat in the loft as he heads up the stairs he’s immediately on alert. He sniffs the air and the scent is…

“It can’t be.” Scott rushes up the stairs and slides the door open.

And it is. Derek is standing on the other side of the room looking at the map wall.

“Love what you’ve done with place,” he says without turning around.

“Derek!”

Scott runs across the room and Derek faces him just in time to be wrapped up in a bear hug.

“It’s so good to see you!” Scott yells.

“You too,” Derek wheezes.

“Oh, sorry,” Scott says as he lets go. He takes a step back. Derek looks amazing. The stubble Scott remembers has blossomed into a full-on beard and his hair is now long enough to have a little waviness to it. “I was getting worried about you. I haven’t heard from you since Nashville.”

“So I see,” Derek says. “Quite the setup you’ve got here. Stiles’ idea?”

“Yeah. But it was Malia who suggested we should use it to keep track of more than just you.”

Derek points at the white string, “Stiles?”

Scott nods. He confirms Derek’s correct guesses for Kira and Lydia as well. He gets to the gray string.

“Is this Malia then?”

“Malia stayed in Beacon Hills with me. She’s a deputy now.”

“Then who?”

“Isaac.”

Derek follows the string with his finger marking Isaac’s journey around the world.

“He’s back?”

“Last year,” Scott said. “He’d had a rough time. He’s doing better now.”

“It seemed like he was doing great in Paris when I saw him.”

“He was. He moved to Cannes and something happened that had him on the go for a while. He won’t tell me what it was. He was doing okay in Hawaii, but then he got mixed up with the wrong people and well, I don’t know the whole story, but what I do know is pretty bad. I’ll leave it up to him to tell you if he wants to.”

“I could have done better by him,” Derek says.

“Me too. But he’s home now. And he’s safe. And I think he’s happy.”

“What’s he up to?”

“He’s staying with my mom. He’s starting nursing school in the fall.”

“And the kid?” Derek asks.

“Liam’s fine. He goes to Northwestern with Mason and Brett,” Scott points to a picture on the wall of the three of them. It’s a selfie, Liam and Mason ducked under Brett with the tall boy’s long arm sticking out to get them all in the shot. Liam had sent it to him and Scott printed it out.

“Brett’s with you now?”

“Brett’s with Mason,” Scott says pointing the prom picture. “Which means he’s with me.”

“They met in what? Ninth grade? They’re still together?”

“Yep.”

“Good for them. And Brett joined your pack for him?”

Scott nods.

“That’s not usually how that works,” Derek says, looking slightly incredulous.

“So I’ve heard, though Mason’s not exactly human anymore.”

“You bit him?”

“Last year. He asked me to. He’s a good wolf. He’s strong, but he’s kind.”

Derek peruses the pictures. “This your fiancé?” He points to a picture of Scott and Antonio standing in front of a swimming pool, shirtless with one arm wrapped around each other’s shoulders and the other holding up drinks as they smile for the camera.

“Yeah, that’s Antonio. It’s Acapulco. We went with Stiles and Malia. Spring break, Stiles’ junior year.”

He asks about several others and Scott fills in the details of his life in Derek’s absence.

Derek gets to the Key West picture. “This one?”

“Spring break freshman year. Key West.”

“Oh. You know there’s a huge enclave of mer-folk living around Key West?”

“I do know that. Now!” Scott teases. “Sure would have been nice if someone had been around to tell me about it then,” he says throwing a pointed look at Derek.

Derek laughs and looks down sheepishly. “Sorry.”

Derek points to another picture. “Are these the omegas you adopted?”

“The Panabakers, yeah. They’re good people. They just had twins. I don’t have pictures up yet. I’ve got some on my phone though. They’re so cute!”

He pulls out his phone and brings up the pictures.

Derek takes the phone from Scott, smiling as he scrolls through pictures of the twins, then looks up at Scott, “That’s actually sort of why I’m here.”

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve built a strong pack. I told you you’d be good at this.”

“Thanks.”

“And now I need your help.”

“Of course! Anything you need. Is it Braeden? Where is she? Is she okay?”

“She’s fine. She’s at a hotel in town with… with our daughter.”

“Derek! You have a baby? That’s amazing!” Scott’s smile is huge has he pulls Derek into another hug.

“Yeah it is, actually,” There’s wonder in Derek’s voice as he returns Scott’s embrace. Scott pulls a way after a moment and they’re both smiling.

“That is so awesome. Is that why you were in New York so long?”

Derek nods. “Last trimester. It’s where she was born.”

He pulls out his phone and brings up a picture. He’s grinning as he hands the phone to Scott. “This is Erica.”

Scott will never admit it out loud but he’s now seen a cuter baby than the Panabaker twins. Little Erica Hale is an adorable cherub of a girl with chubby cheeks, light brown skin, puffy black hair, and the biggest gray eyes Scott has ever seen. But for the color they look just like her father’s.

“Derek, she’s beautiful,” Scott chuckles when he sees Derek puff up with pride.

“She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

“But why didn’t you tell us sooner?”

“Kind of big news for a postcard or a text.”

“You could have called.”

“No, I needed to tell you in person, because I need to ask you something important.”

“What is it?”

“Braeden and I want to stay in Beacon Hills. We’ve enjoyed our time on the road, but our baby needs a home.”

“And what? You think you need to ask me before you can move back home?”

“You’re the alpha.”

“That doesn’t give me the right to determine where you can live.”

“It does if I want to live here.” Scott opens his mouth to protest, but Derek keeps talking, “There’s a lot about how werewolf packs work that you don’t know. And I haven’t told you much about it on purpose because the way you handle things usually turns out for the better. True alphas are always game changers. It’s in your nature to shake up the order of things. But this is important to me. It means a lot to me to know you’re okay with my coming back here.”

“Of course I’m okay with it, I never wanted you to go in the first place,” Scott’s grin is wide and bright as he reaches out his hand. When Derek takes it to shake, Scott pulls him into a hug. “I’m so glad you’re here,” Scott whispers against Derek’s chest as he just stands there holding onto his friend for dear life. 

Derek returns the embrace for a time, but eventually loosens his arms from around Scott’s shoulders. It takes some throat clearing and a pat on Scott’s back before he actually lets go.

“Sorry,” he says, jumping back slightly. “Is that all you needed to ask me?”

“It’s part of it,” Derek says. “The other part is for Erica. Like I said, you’ve built a strong pack here. And that’s exactly what she needs.”

“Is she a werewolf? Can you tell already?”

“No,” Derek says. “We won’t know for years, but even if she’s not, her children could be someday. She needs to grow up in a pack. She needs to know where she comes from.” Derek looks him in the eye. “Will you accept her?”

“What exactly are you asking?”

“I want her to be in your pack.”

Scott is taken aback. He’s glad that his friendship with Derek has progressed beyond the animosity of their first meeting, but he’s always had this suspicion in his head that Derek still sees him as that dumb, frustrating kid blundering his way through being a werewolf. He’s always wondered if the reason Derek never wanted to join his pack was because he didn’t trust him. But here is now, asking Scott to take his daughter into the pack. It fills him with joy to know that Derek has that much faith in him. But he notices Derek is only asking on behalf of Erica and not the rest of his family.

“What will you and Braeden do?”

“We’ll live here in Beacon Hills. We’ll raise her. But you’ll be her alpha.”

The thought of Erica being in his pack without Derek just feels wrong. Scott knows he’ll do it if it’s what Derek really wants, but every instinct he has is telling him Derek needs to join his pack too. “What about you?”

“What about me?”

“Shouldn’t you and your daughter be in the same pack?”

“I don’t have a pack, Scott. I’m all right with that. But I want better for my daughter. She deserves more than the life of an omega on the run.”

Scott is surprised at how much it hurts to hear Derek describe himself that way. “You’re not an omega.”

“I am,” Derek nods his head as Scott shakes his own in disagreement. Derek places a hand on Scott’s shoulder. “And that’s okay.”

“You’re not an omega if you’re not alone. And you’ll never be alone as long as I live.”

Derek tilts his head to the side, looking slightly bewildered. “Scott?”

There’s a look in Derek’s eyes that Scott has never seen before, a sort of cautious hopefulness and Scott realizes he’s been wrong for so long. He’d been waiting all this time, thinking that Derek had to be the one to ask to join the pack. Scott realizes now, looking into Derek’s eyes, that he needs to say the words. It may ultimately be Derek’s decision, but Scott is the alpha. He’s the one who needs to ask. 

“I never asked you,” Scott says quietly, still looking directly into Derek’s eyes. “I didn’t think that after everything that happened when you were the alpha…After the way I rejected you, I never thought you’d agree…I didn’t think I had the right.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying of course I’ll accept your daughter into my pack. But it would make me very happy if you would join it too.”

“Scott,” Derek begins and Scott cuts him off.

“You don’t have to say yes, if you don’t want to. I just…” Scott trails off. He doesn’t know how to make Derek understand how much their friendship has meant to him, doesn’t know how to explain how good it felt when they’d finally put their differences aside and started working together for real. He can’t put into words how it made him feel to know that Derek was thinking of him every time he got a postcard in the mail, or despite the fact that it often frustrated him, how much he’d appreciated Derek’s advice over the years. All those text messages that essentially always boiled down to ‘Trust your heart. I believe in you’. What could he say to make Derek understand all of that?

“I want you in my pack,” Scott says, and it feels horribly inadequate. But maybe it’s just that simple.

“You don’t know what you’re asking,” Derek says softly. “You don’t know what this means.”

”But I do,” Scott says. “You once told me we were brothers, and I didn’t believe you because I didn’t understand what you meant. I do now. I know what it means to be in a pack. I know how important it is. I want you to be my brother, Derek. Please.”

“Scott, there isn’t a werewolf alive who would turn down the chance to be a part of what you’ve built here,” Derek says indicating the photos on the wall.

“So, that’s a yes?” Scott looks hopefully into Derek’s eyes.

“Yes, Scott,” Derek says with a laugh. “It’s a yes.”

Scott smiles. He opens the chest of drawers under the map and pulls out the blue yarn. He uses it to connect Nashville back to Beacon Hills. He looks at the map. At his friends’ journeys through the world. Isaac is home. Stiles is home. Kira is home, even if he’s sure she won’t stay forever. Lydia will be back next year. He sees Liam, Mason, and Brett on their journey together, but one he knows will eventually lead them home to him and their pack. And now Derek, who has gone further than any of them, who has been to every part of the world is back where he started. That blue line that has crossed all of the others at one point or another has finally come back to the point on the map where it all began.

“Welcome home,” Scott says, as he pulls him into another hug.

“It’s good to be back,” Derek says.

“Okay,” Scott says, pulling away from Derek and tugging him toward the door. “We don’t have much time. We’ve got to get you fitted for a tux.”

“Wait, what?”

“If you’re in the pack, you’re in the wedding. Those are the rules. That I just made up.”

“That is not a rule,” Derek says as he lets himself be dragged out of the loft and down the stairs.

“I’m the alpha. I make the rules. Now let’s get you a tux and then you can introduce me to that baby girl of yours.”

Scott throws an impromptu welcome home party for Derek and Braeden a few days later. It’s just pack, so they can all get introduced to Erica. With three adorable babies to pass around and coo over, most of the pack is pretty well occupied as Derek and Scott talk over by the map wall.

“So, what are your plans for the honeymoon?” Derek asks.

“We can’t really afford much right now. Just a quick weekend at a B&B, then back to work. We’ll probably go to Disneyland around Halloween. That’s always fun. I walk around with my wolf face and tell everyone I’m a Hollywood make up artist.”

Derek laughs.

Braeden joins them, though she keeps one eye on Stiles holding Erica. The baby smiles while he makes funny faces and bounces her on his knee.

“I promise he won’t drop her,” Scott says.

Braeden laughs but doesn’t actually look away until Malia takes the baby into her arms. She turns to the map wall.

“Derek told me about this. I can’t believe you kept all those postcards.”

“If I didn’t display them, I’d never believe he sent them,” Scott says with a smile.

“I thought it seemed a little sentimental for him,” Braeden said.

“Aw, you of all people should know he’s just a big softy underneath.”

She wraps her arm around his and leans in close, “Scott, we’re supposed to pretend we don’t know that to preserve his dark, brooding persona,” she stage whispers through a smile.

“Oh, right!” Scott laughs.

“Very funny, you two,” Derek says.

“But no string for you?” Braeden asks.

“I’ve taken a few trips. But I can’t exactly mail myself a postcard. Anyway, I didn’t really have the time to travel. Leaving town for too long just doesn’t feel right.”

“Things will be different now,” Derek says. “Your pack is bigger. Almost everyone is back in town to stay. I won’t say we don’t need you, but we could get by without you for more than a week at a time.”

Scott looks around the room and realizes Derek is right. His pack has grown before his eyes and he’s only just now seeing it for what it’s become. They’re no longer just a bunch of kids trying to protect each other from the monsters in the dark. There are grown adults, and college students, and teenagers, and new babies. They’re a family. Then he looks at Derek. Derek whose family has been protecting Beacon Hills since long before Scott was born and who has accepted that as his mission once again, only this time as part of Scott’s pack, and he knows he doesn’t need to worry so much anymore. They’re all in this together.

“Oh, Derek,” Scott says, mock crying, “you said ‘we’!” Scott hugs him.

“Shut up,” Derek drawls and pushes Scott away playfully.

Braeden laughs and snaps a picture of the two of them as they tussle. It’s up and framed on the wall before the party is even over.


	5. Epilogue

Derek decides Scott’s honeymoon plan is crap, so he buys a better one for them. He arranges time off for them with Deaton and Antonio’s boss. They’ll start in Cancun, fly to Rome, then a cruise to the Greek islands on the Aegean Sea, from there, London, and then to Florida just in time for Halloween in Disney World. He pays for most of it, though the rest of the pack chips in what they can.

They present it to Scott the night before the wedding, and of course he says he can’t accept it.

Derek points at the map. “We all got to go around the world because you stayed behind to protect our home. Now it’s your turn.”

Scott just nods, and he and Antonio thank them all profusely. Derek hands him the itinerary; he’s included a number of helpful supernatural notes along the side. Stuff like:

“There’s a pack of Nagual in Cancun. Don’t worry, they’re not like Kate. I told them you’re coming. You shouldn’t have any trouble.”

And, “Kelpies are a thing, don’t walk along the Thames at night.”

And, “There’s a lunar eclipse on October 22nd. It lasts for two hours. That’s the night you want to drink your way around World Showcase. Trust me (Scott, don’t forget your inhaler).”

Derek gets his first postcard about a week after they leave. He takes it over to the loft. It’s still a bit weird walking into that space and knowing it’s no longer his. Scott had offered to vacate when he came back, but Derek had told him it was his home now. It’s not exactly kid-friendly anyway. He and Braeden are renting a place, but Derek already has plans to renovate the rest of the building into apartments for the pack. He’s promised the first one to Stiles who is desperate to move out of his father’s house and in with Malia, but they can’t find anything they can afford that’s not a total shit-hole. He and Braeden are definitely taking the next one though. Derek has fond memories of growing up in a big house always surrounded by his pack. He wants that for his daughter.

He eyes the map and sees Scott has made one more alteration. There’s now a thin cord of shiny black leather loosely wrapped around the blue string mapping out Derek’s journey around the world. From New York, through Nashville and on back to Beacon Hills, the black leather and blue yarn are braided together with a shiny purple ribbon. Derek looks at it and smiles. He tacks the postcard over Cancun and digs through the drawer where Scott keeps the yarn. He twines two pieces together, one red for his alpha, the other a deep gold for his alpha’s mate, and marks off the first leg of their journey together.

**Author's Note:**

> This story started with a twitter conversation with friends about a scene I'd like to see. So, I thought I'd write it. But then it needed a few paragraphs of set up and the next thing I knew, I was sending a 10,000 word story out to be beta read. And it grew considerably after that. I hope you enjoyed it. It's been a labor of love.


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